18. Zapatero Ministry (2004-2008) -3-
18. Zapatero Ministry (2004-2008) -3-
On July 7, 2005, Boyer landed in Paris after his meeting with Beckett and Schäuble. He was received by both the newly elected French President of the Republic, Nicolas Sarkozy, and the Prime Minister, François Hollande. By 12 o'clock, when their car entered the Champs Elysées, an explosion rocked the area and the car vanished, engulfed by a crown of fire. At the same time, at the Concorde Bridge gathered a mass of men and women dressed in brown and formed in military fashion with a returned Jean Marie Le Pen and his daughter Marine ath their head. They began to move when, out of nowhere, a dozen Gardes Mobiles appeared on their hurried way towards the Champs Elysées and noticed the gathering. The trembling commander gave them orders and formed a hurried blockade, much to the annoyance of Le Pen, who did not expect to be stalled on the very beginning of his march to return to power.
Thus, Le Pen found himself with an unwanted obstacle in his way. It was made worse because Aurelien Brendien, who found himself leading the small police force, had little experience in dealing with riots and lacked the temper to face such a situation. When, at the other end of the bridge, the chants and cries grew louder, he began to tremble. From the distance, police officers could be heard shouting orders and the sound of the ambulances reaching the place. Brendien suddenly realized the destination of the protesters. The Assemblée Nationale was just a stone's throw away. All rioters had to do was to cross the bridge that Brendien was unwantedly protecting. Then someone shouted that Sarkozy and Hollande were dead. Brendien could hear the protesters marching towards him shouting and calling for the overthrow of the Government.
Brendien, pale with fear and rage, exploded when the protesters began to sing the "Marseillaise". He saw some of them wearing all kinds of weapons, even some guns. His fear reached the top and took control of him. Thus, he shouted:
"Fire!!!"
Then, some members of the French police horse charged against the crowd at the bridge.
The two groups exchanged fire, but the protesters, taken by surprise, could only fire a few shots before the mounted policemen fell on them with their batons. In the end, one police officer was killed and three wounded. On the ground seventeen protesters laid dead. Among them were Jean Marie Le Pen, shot through the head, and his daughter Marine, wounded in the leg and then trampled over by a charging horse.
However, sad as the incident at the Concorde Bridge was, it paled in comparison with the carnage at the Champs Elysées. The dead piled on the burnt down restaurant "Le Fouquet's", which had been almost destroyed by the explosion. The shop windows of Boss, Etam, Nike, Swarowski and numerous other boutiques lining the boulevard were shattered by the blast, which left 28 dead people and 142 injured. Neither Sakorzny nor Hollande (nor Boyer) were dead, as Brendien had heard. Their armored car prevented them from being assassinated.
The armored Audi after the explosion.
On July 7, 2005, Boyer landed in Paris after his meeting with Beckett and Schäuble. He was received by both the newly elected French President of the Republic, Nicolas Sarkozy, and the Prime Minister, François Hollande. By 12 o'clock, when their car entered the Champs Elysées, an explosion rocked the area and the car vanished, engulfed by a crown of fire. At the same time, at the Concorde Bridge gathered a mass of men and women dressed in brown and formed in military fashion with a returned Jean Marie Le Pen and his daughter Marine ath their head. They began to move when, out of nowhere, a dozen Gardes Mobiles appeared on their hurried way towards the Champs Elysées and noticed the gathering. The trembling commander gave them orders and formed a hurried blockade, much to the annoyance of Le Pen, who did not expect to be stalled on the very beginning of his march to return to power.
Thus, Le Pen found himself with an unwanted obstacle in his way. It was made worse because Aurelien Brendien, who found himself leading the small police force, had little experience in dealing with riots and lacked the temper to face such a situation. When, at the other end of the bridge, the chants and cries grew louder, he began to tremble. From the distance, police officers could be heard shouting orders and the sound of the ambulances reaching the place. Brendien suddenly realized the destination of the protesters. The Assemblée Nationale was just a stone's throw away. All rioters had to do was to cross the bridge that Brendien was unwantedly protecting. Then someone shouted that Sarkozy and Hollande were dead. Brendien could hear the protesters marching towards him shouting and calling for the overthrow of the Government.
Brendien, pale with fear and rage, exploded when the protesters began to sing the "Marseillaise". He saw some of them wearing all kinds of weapons, even some guns. His fear reached the top and took control of him. Thus, he shouted:
"Fire!!!"
Then, some members of the French police horse charged against the crowd at the bridge.
However, sad as the incident at the Concorde Bridge was, it paled in comparison with the carnage at the Champs Elysées. The dead piled on the burnt down restaurant "Le Fouquet's", which had been almost destroyed by the explosion. The shop windows of Boss, Etam, Nike, Swarowski and numerous other boutiques lining the boulevard were shattered by the blast, which left 28 dead people and 142 injured. Neither Sakorzny nor Hollande (nor Boyer) were dead, as Brendien had heard. Their armored car prevented them from being assassinated.
The armored Audi after the explosion.
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